The Rhythms Of Life
The Rhythms Of Life

Author: Leon Kreitzman

Publisher: Profile Books

Published: 2011-09-30

Total Pages: 288

ISBN-13: 1847653723

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Popular science at its most exciting: the breaking new world of chronobiology - understanding the rhythm of life in humans and all plants and animals. The entire natural world is full of rhythms. The early bird catches the worm -and migrates to an internal calendar. Dormice hibernate away the winter. Plants open and close their flowers at the same hour each day. Bees search out nectar-rich flowers day after day. There are cicadas that can breed for only two weeks every 17 years. And in humans: why are people who work anti-social shifts more illness prone and die younger? What is jet-lag and can anything help? Why do teenagers refuse to get up in the morning, and are the rest of us really 'larks' or 'owls'? Why are most people born (and die) between 3am-5am? And should patients be given medicines (and operations) at set times of day, because the body reacts so differently in the morning, evening and at night? The answers lie in our biological clocks the mechanisms which give order to all living things. They impose a structure that enables us to change our behaviour in relation to the time of day, month or year. They are reset at sunrise and sunset each day to link astronomical time with an organism's internal time.

Biological Clocks, Rhythms, and Oscillations
Biological Clocks, Rhythms, and Oscillations

Author: Daniel B. Forger

Publisher: MIT Press

Published: 2024-08-06

Total Pages: 369

ISBN-13: 0262552817

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An introduction to the mathematical, computational, and analytical techniques used for modeling biological rhythms, presenting tools from many disciplines and example applications. All areas of biology and medicine contain rhythms, and these behaviors are best understood through mathematical tools and techniques. This book offers a survey of mathematical, computational, and analytical techniques used for modeling biological rhythms, gathering these methods for the first time in one volume. Drawing on material from such disciplines as mathematical biology, nonlinear dynamics, physics, statistics, and engineering, it presents practical advice and techniques for studying biological rhythms, with a common language. The chapters proceed with increasing mathematical abstraction. Part I, on models, highlights the implicit assumptions and common pitfalls of modeling, and is accessible to readers with basic knowledge of differential equations and linear algebra. Part II, on behaviors, focuses on simpler models, describing common properties of biological rhythms that range from the firing properties of squid giant axon to human circadian rhythms. Part III, on mathematical techniques, guides readers who have specific models or goals in mind. Sections on “frontiers” present the latest research; “theory” sections present interesting mathematical results using more accessible approaches than can be found elsewhere. Each chapter offers exercises. Commented MATLAB code is provided to help readers get practical experience. The book, by an expert in the field, can be used as a textbook for undergraduate courses in mathematical biology or graduate courses in modeling biological rhythms and as a reference for researchers.

Introducing Biological Rhythms
Introducing Biological Rhythms

Author: Willard L. Koukkari

Publisher: Springer Science & Business Media

Published: 2007-07-29

Total Pages: 675

ISBN-13: 1402047010

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Introducing Biological Rhythms is a primer that serves to introduce individuals to the area of biological rhythms. It describes the major characteristics and discusses the implications and applications of these rhythms, while citing scientific results and references. Also, the primer includes essays that provide in-depth historic and other background information for those interested in more specific topics or concepts. It covers a basic cross-section of the field of chronobiology clearly enough so that it can be understood by a novice, or an undergraduate student, but that it would also be sufficiently technical and detailed for the scientist.

Biological Rhythms and Medicine
Biological Rhythms and Medicine

Author: A. Reinberg

Publisher: Springer Science & Business Media

Published: 2012-12-06

Total Pages: 313

ISBN-13: 1461394961

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During the past decade many review papers and books have been devoted to descriptions and analyses of biological rhythms (chronobiology) in plants and animals. These contributed greatly to demonstrating the impor tance of bioperiodicities in living beings in general. However, the practi cal aspects of chronobiology with regard to human health and improving the treatment of disease have not yet been a major focus of publication. One of our aims is to establish the relevance of biological rhythms to the practice of medicine. Another is to organize and convey in a simple fashion information pertinent to health- and life-science professionals so that students, researchers, and practitioners can achieve a clear and pre cise understanding of chronobiology. We have limited scientific jargon to unavoidable basic and well-defined terms and we have emphasized illus trative examples of facts and concepts rather than theories or hypotheti cal mechanisms. This volume is divided into seven chapters, each of which is compre hensive in its treatment and includes an extensive bibliography. The book is organized to serve as a textbook and/or reference handbook of modem applied chronobiology. Chapter 1 describes the historical development of chronobiology and reviews why, when, and how major concepts were introduced, accepted, and transformed.

Biological Rhythms, Sleep and Hypnosis
Biological Rhythms, Sleep and Hypnosis

Author: Simon Green

Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing

Published: 2017-09-16

Total Pages: 200

ISBN-13: 0230364799

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Like food and water, sleep is essential for all. In this excellent study aid, the author looks at the nature and purpose of sleeping andrelated disorders, dreamingand hypnosis. This clear and focused introductionprovides a fantasticentry point for studentsseeking a deeper understanding of altered states of awareness.

Biological Rhythms
Biological Rhythms

Author: Vinod Kumar

Publisher: Springer Science & Business Media

Published: 2002-05-01

Total Pages: 640

ISBN-13: 9783540428534

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(Chapters 11 to 14) summarise important features of the biological clock at the level of whole animal covering all vertebrate classes (fish to mammal). Chapters 15 and 16 are on long term (seasonal) rhythms in plants and higher vertebrates. Short term rhythms (ultradian rhythms), the significance of having a clock system in animals living in extreme (arctic) environments, and the diversity of circadian responses to melatonin, the key endocrine element involved in regulation of biological rhythms, have been discussed in Chapters 17 to 19. Finally, a chapter on sensitivity to light of the photoperiodic clock is added which, using vertebrate examples, illustrates the importance of wavelength and intensity of light on circadian and non-circadian functions. A well-known expert writes each chapter. When presenting information, the text provides consistent thematic coverage and feeling for the methods of investigation. Reference citation within the body of the text adequately reflects the literature as subject is developed. A chapter begins with an abstract that enables a reader to know at the first glance the important points covered in that chapter. The chapter concludes with a full citation of references included in the text, which could be useful for further reading. The book ends with a comprehensive subject index that may be useful for quick searches.

Circadian Rhythms in Bacteria and Microbiomes
Circadian Rhythms in Bacteria and Microbiomes

Author: Carl Hirschie Johnson

Publisher: Springer Nature

Published: 2021-06-21

Total Pages: 424

ISBN-13: 3030721582

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This book addresses multiple aspects of biological clocks in prokaryotes. The first part of the book deals with the circadian clock system in cyanobacteria, i.e. the pioneer of bacterial clocks. Starting with the history and background of cyanobacteria and circadian rhythms in microorganisms, the topics range from the molecular basis, structure and evolution of the circadian clock to modelling approaches, Kai systems in cyanobacteria and biotechnological applications. In the second part, emergent timekeeping properties of bacteria in microbiomes and bacteria other than cyanobacteria are discussed. Since the discovery of circadian rhythms in cyanobacteria in the late 1980s, the field has exploded with new information. The cyanobacterial model system for studying circadian rhythms (Synechococcus elongatus), has allowed a detailed genetic dissection of the bacterial clock due to state-of-the-art methods in molecular, structural, and evolutionary biology. Cutting-edge research spanning from cyanobacteria and circadian phenomena in other kinds of bacteria, to microbiomes has now given the field another major boost. This book is aimed at junior and senior researchers alike. Students or researchers new to the field of biological clocks in prokaryotes will get a comprehensive overview, while more experienced researchers will get an update on the latest developments.

Biological Timekeeping: Clocks, Rhythms and Behaviour
Biological Timekeeping: Clocks, Rhythms and Behaviour

Author: Vinod Kumar

Publisher: Springer

Published: 2017-02-15

Total Pages: 663

ISBN-13: 8132236882

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This book is a concise, comprehensive and up-to-date account of fundamental concepts and potential applications of biological timekeeping mechanisms in animals and humans. It also discusses significant aspects of the organization and importance of timekeeping mechanisms in both groups. Divided into seven sections, it addresses important aspects including fundamental concepts; animal and human clocks; clock interactions; clocks and metabolism and immune functions; pineal, melatonin and timekeeping; and clocks, photoperiodism and seasonal behaviours. The book also focuses on biological clock applications in a 24x7 human society, particularly in connection with life-style associated disorders like obesity and diabetes. It is a valuable resource for advanced undergraduates, researchers and professionals engaged in the study of the science of biological timekeeping.

Seasons of Life
Seasons of Life

Author: Leon Kreitzman

Publisher: Profile Books

Published: 2010-08-26

Total Pages: 316

ISBN-13: 1847652794

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The natural world is full of rhythms. How do birds know when to return to their nesting grounds? What effect do the seasons have on our wellbeing, and how does the season in which we are born affect our subsequent life chances? How did humans get the idea that there were seasons 50,000 years ago? Seasons of Life explains why the seasons occur, the impact of seasonal change and how organisms have evolved to anticipate these changes. For although we mask the effects of seasonal changes by warming our homes, lighting our nights, preserving foods and storing water, we cannot hide from them.